A mod for Grand Theft Auto 4 has been circulating the web for the past week or so that makes some very stunning additions to the almost three-year-old game. Implementing some new lighting and graphical improvements, this GTA4 mod delivers a video game image that is as close to photorealistic as has been seen in the franchise to date.

Dubbed the icEnhancer, this mod makes the cars look like they were ripped from the tracks of Gran Turismo and the buildings feel like perfect renderings of their real world counterparts. And to make the game look even more impressive, that same shader and texture improvements that were added to the vehicles and buildings make main characters like Niko Bellic look much better -- not as impressive as the landscapes but still improved.

If you are in possession of a PC copy of Grand Theft Auto 4 and want to give the icEnhancer mod a go yourself, you can pick it up here. Or if you want to keep up on any of the updates being made to the mod, head on over to the official Facebook page for screenshots and quick looks at how awesome the mod makes the game look. But, for a brief tease check out the mod in action below:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXjsMRDPrls

There are obviously times when the mod, but more realistically the game, shows its imperfections, but from a distance it's one of those eye-rubbing moments. Sure there are developers that attempt to give their games this same type of photorealistic quality (Battlefield 3 for example), but for a fan-created mod this is one of the best.

Obviously the best case scenario for these modders is Rockstar catches wind of their work and they are asked to help out on Grand Theft Auto 5 in some capacity. Not saying that Rockstar isn’t fully capable of delivering great games, they are just known moreso for presenting gamers with painstakingly recreated cityscapes rather than graphically impressive facades and vehicles. At the very least hopefully the folks at Rockstar are taking note of the work these modders are putting out and trying to implement it in the next iteration of the Grand Theft Auto series.

Have you had a chance to check out any of the Grand Theft Auto mods released since 2008? Care to share any of the awesome screenshots from your playthrough with the mod on?

Source: GTA 4 Mods